The Interoperability Mandate

Of course, regular visitors to this site know that we believe interoperability is a key issue for customers. In our customer forum series report published last December, we wrote that customers pointed to Microsoft interoperability as a particular issue that the industry has collectively done the least to address. What's interesting is that the relative volume that this is being voiced has been steadily increasing in the last year, even from one forum event to the next. We believe this is tied to the recent rapid adoption of open source solutions in the enterprise, as opposed to simply Linux, Apache and other infrastructure. It's in the solutions space that integration issues become more complex and multi-faceted, and where lack of available APIs or expertise becomes particularly painful. Our guess is Microsoft's executives were hearing the same thing, to the point where this became necessary for fear of alienating its customers.

The Real News

The real news here is the opportunity that API availability creates for third-parties, including integrators, developers and other vendors. Now, there are over 30,000 new pages of content on its MSDN site that they can leverage to meet customers' interoperability requirements. We expect there will be a rush of integrators pursuing the opportunities this will create.

The Non-News

There were other aspects to the announcement that we perceived as non-news and, if we had the opportunity, would have advised against even discussing, because of the predictable derision these have endured. If anything, these just fanned the flames of long-running controversies regarding Microsoft's handling of IP and our patent system in general, and distracted from the real news regarding API availability and the resulting third-party opportunity. These include:

Assurance not to sue developers working on projects that may infringe Microsoft IP, as long as done for non-commercial purposes. Microsoft has said this in the past, thus isn't new news.

Stating they would publish the list of 235 patents allegedly being violated. Our opinions regarding our patent system notwithstanding, it is our current law, and most community developers want to abide by it, even if just to avoid trouble. If given the opportunity, they will make good faith efforts to avoid duplicating others' IP. Publishing this will be helpful, but until that actually happens, this is non-news.

The Big Picture

Nonetheless, overall, we see this as an important step in a series of steps that Microsoft is taking to be a more open company. And become more open they must, as must any software company in the 21st century. Open, transparent and collaborative ways of doing business are becoming the norm - and this isn't just about opening up one's source code, but throughout all aspects of running a business and engaging with customers and partners. Customers are increasingly demanding this, the next generation of professionals raised on the Internet is demanding this, and those companies that don't evolve towards this reality will gradually become marginalized.

Of course, many in the community would wish that Microsoft (and other proprietary companies') management would just roll over and go open, in one climactic, cathartic moment. This is not realistic. Any of us who have worked for large organizations know this: True change can be agonizingly slow, with fits and starts, and is not for the impatient or faint of heart. The old way of doing business has made many successful careers and many individual fortunes, leading to entrenched interests and a deep desire for continuity. It has made organizational models and work habits that countless professionals take for granted in their day to day work. It has made sacred cows that many forward-thinking leaders and change agents may find difficult to overcome. In such environments, one has little choice but to take small steps, tied to tangible, external demands (such as customers') that are consequently easier for the organization to accept.

I can only imagine how this dynamic unfolded in Microsoft leading up to yesterday's announcement, and I don't envy the challenge. Congratulations to Microsoft's "change agents", including Bill Hilf, Sam Ramji and many others, for making these small and achievable steps towards a more open Microsoft ecosystem.